Michael Tanenhaus
Also known as Michael K. Tanenhaus
Michael Tanenhaus is a researcher at the University of Rochester, where he has worked since 1983 on how people understand spoken language. He is best known as the creator of the visual world paradigm, a method for studying spoken language comprehension. His first book, Lexical Ambiguity Resolution, appeared in 1988 with a subtitle that places artificial intelligence beside psycholinguistics and neuropsychology. Between 1996 and 2009 he directed the Center for Language Sciences in two stretches, and in 2018 the Cognitive Science Society gave him its top award, the Rumelhart Prize. As of October 2026 he holds a Bishop professorship at Rochester.
- Now at
- University of Rochester
- Works
- 393
- Citations
- 28,258
- h-index
- 83
Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 14 October 2026.
Timeline
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1973–1978
Degrees from Iowa and Columbia
The University of Iowa grants his B.S. in speech and hearing sciences in 1973, and Columbia University grants his Ph.D. in psychology in 1978.
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1983
A Rochester faculty post
After teaching at Wayne State University, he joins the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the University of Rochester in 1983.
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1988
Lexical ambiguity resolution
His first book, Lexical Ambiguity Resolution, appears in 1988 with a subtitle that names psycholinguistics, neuropsychology and artificial intelligence.
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1995
A 1995 Science paper
He publishes a 1995 paper in Science on integrating visual and linguistic information during spoken language comprehension.
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1996–2009
Directing the Center for Language Sciences
Between 1996 and 2000, and again from 2003 to 2009, he directs the Center for Language Sciences at Rochester.
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2018
A David E. Rumelhart Prize
In 2018 the Cognitive Science Society gives him the David E. Rumelhart Prize, the top prize in cognitive science. The prize carries $100,000 and is presented at the society's annual meeting. He is best known as the creator of the visual world paradigm, a method for studying spoken language comprehension.
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As of October 2026
A Bishop professorship at Rochester
At Rochester he is the Beverly Petterson Bishop and Charles W. Bishop Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and Linguistics.
Sources and credits
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